This is my favorite coconut creation. I’ve made 3 different versions and this is my favorite. If I figure out another one to add I will let you know. It’s super easy and requires no fancy equipment or weird ingredients. No crust to fuss with. Probably any brand of gf flour will work. Otherwise it is all naturally gf ingredients. It doesn’t take more than 10 minutes to throw together and into the oven it goes for 43-45 minutes. I suggest that you allow it to set up for at least 4 hours. After two-three hours you could put it in the fridge to get it cold. If you prefer no chocolate just leave it out. I wonder what it would taste like with dark chocolate bits. Next time!
Ingredients:
2/3-3/4 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1/4 cup plus 1 Tbsp. of GF flour blend (I used KA basic gf blend)
1/2 c melted butter or 1/3 c liquid coconut oil
1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup shredded coconut, sweetened version
1/4 c mini chocolate chips
a tsp of soft butter for coating the pie pan or soft coconut oil
Directions: Heat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch glass pie pan. Melt the butter in the microwave in a Pyrex measuring cup. Put sugar and eggs into a mixing bowl, I used my stand mixer. I beat it for 3-4 minutes until it was thick and lemon yellow. Stop mixer, add in milk. flour, oil or melted butter, vanilla, and vinegar. Beat briefly to blend well. Fold in coconut. Pour half of this batter into the buttered pie pan, sprinkle with half the chocolate chips. Gently pour in rest of batter. Sprinkle with rest of chips. Put in oven on middle shelf. Bake 43 to 45 minutes until the middle is set and it is golden in color. Let cool fully 3-4 hours. Can eat either at room temperature or slightly chilled. Because of the custard, please store leftovers (if any!) in your fridge. Enjoy!
I tried this cake out for my guy’s birthday a week ago. I made a few changes, like reducing the sugar and it is just perfect. But, I couldn’t find it again on Pinterest, so I am writing it down before I forget. Great texture and flavor. The mini chocolate chips added great flavor. This recipe is a keeper!
Notes: I only made it with King Arthur Measure for Measure GF flour; try other measure for measure blends at your own risk and let me know how they turn out! I think it would be fine with just one teaspoon of vanilla, but I put in both.
I know, not a good picture. I kept forgetting to take them as I made it and even forgot to take a decent picture of one slice. Next time I make it!
GF Chocolate Bundt Cake
Ingredients:
1 3/4 cup King Arthur Measure for Measure GF flour
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1 3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup mild oil like canola
2/3 cup cocoa, unsweetened and not Dutch
1 cup very hot water
3 eggs
3/4 cup sour cream, room temp
2 tsp. vanilla extract
3/4 cup mini chocolate chips
Directions: Spray an 8 cup bundt mold with baking spray or with a film of solid shortening. Set aside. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix flour, baking soda, salt and sugar together in a bowl.
In another bowl mix the cocoa, hot water and oil and add the dry ingredients to it, mix. Then add the eggs, vanilla and sour cream and blend fully. Fold in the chocolate chips. Pour into the cake pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-55 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for 5-6 minutes before de-panning onto a cooling rack. Cool completelybefore frosting.
Ganache: 1/2 cup dark or semi-sweet chocolate chips, 1/2 cup whipping cream. Heat cream until nearly hot not boiling (low heat setting), add chocolate chips. Stir until chips are melting, turn off heat and stir until all melted. Let cool for 10-15 minutes until it just flows before drizzling glaze over the cake with a spoon.
This is an incredibly moist and decadent cupcake, yet it is gluten free. It gets it richness from olive oil, carrots and plump raisins soaked in a little booze. There is no flour substitution; made entirely with ground almond flour so it is naturally gluten free. It makes 12-18 cupcakes depending on how full you fill each liner and is fairly low in sugar for a cake, and I made a cream cheese icing with less sugar and less cream cheese plus it was a lower fat cream cheese; I just iced the top, you need less icing and save a few calories. This version comes from a cake by Nigella Lawson with a few changes and additions by me. So, all I am thinking right now is why didn’t I make this, years and years ago!
You really need a food scale to weigh and measure properly. Much more exact. For the olive oil I eyeballed the amount in a 1 cup glass measuring cup. Please do not increase the carrots or raisins as that will make the batter too moist and too heavy; the center may not bake fully. They do not rise much due to the relatively heavy batter.
Notes: I didn’t have much rum on hand the first try, so I used some bootleg limoncello I made about 5 years ago to soak my golden raisins in. It really brought the citrus out in this cake. It was equally delicious made with rum the second try. My first version used orange zest; as I was out of lemons, but I had some this time. The three tablespoons of walnuts as no pine nuts around; I toasted them, and they had a smaller flavor impact than pine nuts but better for my budget. Do toast them as it really amps up the nutty flavor.
I wasn’t much thinking about blogging; I was teaching a friend how to make this recipe and so I took only one picture.
Venetian Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Ingredients:
3 Tbsp pine nuts or chopped walnuts
8 oz coarsely shredded carrots (peel first if not organic)
3 oz golden raisins
2 ¼ oz limoncello or rum (I measured the raisins in a glass measuring cup and added limoncello to a touch above halfway up the raisins) About 2 Tbsp. rum
5 oz sugar
4.5 fluid ounces mild olive oil plus a tad more for greasing the pan
3 large eggs at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
9 oz almond flour (not almond meal)
A scant ½ tsp. nutmeg
¼ tsp. cinnamon
The zest of half a good sized lemon or orange plus the juice of said lemon
Frosting
6 oz room temp light cream cheese
2 Tbsp. butter at room temp
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
Directions:
Prep: Toast the pine nuts (or chopped walnuts) in a dry frying pan stirring or tossing constantly; they will burn if you don’t toss and stir and when they are about done pour them in a small bowl; don’t leave them in the (heat off) frying pan; they will burn on the residual warmth of the pan. Let cool. Put the raisins and limoncello in a small saucepan and heat up; then turn down the heat and simmer for 3 minutes or microwave 30 -60 seconds. Let cool before using. Next, peel and grate carrots. I did it by hand with my versatile box grater on coarse side, but you can use a food processor, or a shedder attached to your stand mixer. I grated them onto wax paper and then weighed it; so much more accurate than saying 3 carrots and hoping it is the right amount. Put liners in your muffin tins; if you want tall cupcakes make 12. For short ones do 18 cupcakes. I tried some silicon cupcake liners and loved them. Heat your oven to 350 degrees and make sure your shelf is in the middle.
Cake Directions: Put the almond flour, the two spices in a small bowl and whisk to blend. Put the sugar and olive oil in a large mixing bowl and whisk until it is well blended, light and creamy looking. Add the eggs one at a time mixing well before the next one. Add the vanilla extract, mix briefly. They add the almond flour mix and then carrots and the raisins and liquid clinging to them plus lemon juice. Last, add the pine nuts and lemon or orange zest. Blend briefly. Pour into the prepared pan and bake for approximately 22-24 minutes; mine took the full 24 minutes. They should look slightly risen and a cake testor will come out clean. Let cool 5 minutes, then remove the cupcakes and set them on a cooling rack and cool completely before frosting.
Make the icing; blend the cream cheese (I often soften mine 30 seconds on low in the microwave) and softened butter until fluffy; add the sugar in half cups or less as you blend. Add the vanilla and beat the frosting until it is fluffy. Frost the top of your beautiful cupcakes. Enjoy!
This is a lovely winter soup in that it is hearty and can be made with what you have in the wintertime. Italian sausage is totally required as are onions, carrots, celery, great northern beans plus some delicious seasonings that make it perfection.
Notes: I used dried great northern beans; cooked them in my instant Pot until done. Once you have that it is about 30 minutes to make it. You can use canned beans but I do prefer the wonderful flavor when you cook them from a dried state. If you want to change the veggies; sure but don’t leave them out as they really add to the substance and flavor of the soup. The cream gets so dispersed that it really doesn’t taste all that rich, but it does pull the whole thing together perfectly.
Sausage and White Bean Soup
Ingredients:
1 cup (half a bag) of dried Great Northern beans
1 bay leaf
1 lb of Italian sausage; loose (if in links you will need to slit the casing and dump out the meat before cooking.
1 large onion diced
2 big carrots, cut in half rounds
3 celery stalks diced
2 tsp. minced garlic
4 cups chicken broth or all the bean cooking liquid plus 2 tsp. Better than Boullion chicken broth paste and enough water to make 4 cups; I had 3 cups of bean broth leftover from cooking the beans
1 Tbsp. tomato paste
1/2 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. basil
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes (up to 1/2 tsp.)
1/4-1/2 tsp. black pepper (I used 1/4 tsp)
2 cups or handfuls of baby spinach
1/2 cup heavy cream
1-2 Tbsp. chopped parsley to sprinkle on top or 1 tsp. dried parsely
Directions: I put the beans in water to cover them, brought to a boil and boiled 2 minutes. Then let them stand 1 hour. Drain water and rinse beans well. Place in IP with filtered water to cover by nearly 2 inches. I set my IP for 15 minutes as I had this bag for at least 6 months. After it cools 15 more minutes open the top and let cool while you make the soup.
In a large saucepan spray the bottom with cooking spray as it heats. Add sausage meat. Cook 10-15 minutes, breaking up the meat as it cooks. Add the chopped onions and carrots; stir well and add the celery. Stir and cook about 5 minutes. Add the garlic; stir and cook a minute. Then add the spices, the tomato paste and stir well. Add the stock/broth. Let heat a couple of minutes and add the beans. Stir well and let it come to a simmer. Cook 8 minutes. Taste and make sure the veggies are cooked. If not cook a few minutes more. Add the cream slowly (I like to pour a few spoonfuls of the hot soup in and stir it up to warm the cream before adding it.) Cook a minute at a simmer and add the spinach. Cook 3-4 more minutes; sprinkle with parsley and serve. Enjoy!
Okay, it is still winter and pretty cold but spring looms with daylight savings time beginning plus I am a tiny bit weary of posting soups. I do enjoy other sorts of food you know! There is this recipe I’ve been making for years. The other day I was chowing down my lunch and someone said, “What is that lovely roasty smell?” and I was able to say with a smile that it was my turkey meatballs with lemon gravy.
They are not fancy; the recipe, which I tore out of a woman’s magazine a decade ago, said they are supposed to replace regular meatballs as healthier but I just like them for their homey taste and the excellent sauce! You can also make them with ground chicken; very good as well. I never seem to have enough sauce so you could make even more of that and be happy with the amount. I used to have them over noodles all the time but now that I am gf I occasionally use white or brown rice, both work very well with this sauce. I am guessing quinoa would be nice as well.
It is the lemon that makes them taste so good but I also like the carrot and scallions in the sauce. Home flavors and pretty healthy, this is a satisfying meal with a starch and a veggie added on. And you can put it together in 30 minutes. Perfect for a week night supper.
Lemon Sauced Turkey Meatballs
1 lb ground turkey
1 medium onion, minced
1 large egg
¼-1/3 cup gf bread or cracker crumbs
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce.
½-3/4 tsp. lemon zest
½ tsp sea salt and same of pepper
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 cup chicken broth
1/3 cup plain low fat or full fat yogurt
2 tbsp. gf flour of your choice
1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 carrot grated fine
2 scallions chopped into small rounds
1/3 cup celery leaves chopped fine, optional
Directions:
Mix the meatballs up in a large mixing bowl; dump in the ground turkey, add the onion, crumbs, Worcestershire sauce, lemon zest, sea salt, pepper to taste and egg. Mix until fairly well distributed. Form into 12-16 meatballs.
Heat the oil in a wide Teflon or cast-iron pan. Add the meatballs. Brown them on all sides, turning carefully with a spatula and a fork. When browned add the broth and cover. Cook 12-15 minutes, add up to ½ cup more broth if needed; there should be at least ½ cup left when they are cooked. Add the flour to the yogurt, stir and add to the pan. Add the lemon juice and stir in the carrot, celery if using it, and the white parts of the scallions. Cook 2-3 minutes. Add the rest of the scallions and stir. If it seems too thick add some more chicken broth. I like this concentrate I found, Better than Bouillon, very handy and GF. Perfect when you need less than 15 ounces of broth.
Serve the meatballs and sauce over rice or noodles. I have been experimenting lately and served a topping of pickled red onions; really nice zingy addition…up to you. For that I cut up part of a red onion and top with cider vinegar to cover, let stand at least 30 minutes. Will keep overnight in fridge. It is a fun topper on salads too.
First published in 2015. Recipe unchanged in this repost.
My World Without Wheat 